


Something New

by arabmorgan



Category: Produce 101 (TV), Wanna One (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Cat/Human Hybrids, Developing Relationship, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-20
Updated: 2018-08-20
Packaged: 2019-06-29 16:12:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,165
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15732915
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/arabmorgan/pseuds/arabmorgan
Summary: "Jaehwan has never been under any illusions that he’s a particularly nice person, but certain things do tug at his heartstrings, and Seongwoo is certainly doing a lot of tugging right then."





	Something New

For Jaehwan, seeing a hybrid is a bit like seeing a golf club anywhere around him. They’re far from uncommon and he probably does know the bare bones about what they actually are, but they are strictly the domain of the upper middle class at the very least, and he has definitely never seen one in the flesh, nor does he ever expect to.

Except that day, he thinks he does, as he is in between songs and fiddling with his guitar, grinning around at the fluid crowd around him – he thinks he sees a small figure in the distance, half-hidden behind the corner of a building, triangular ears twitching on top of its head. He almost does a double take, but the crowd is waiting, and he has a living to make.

 _Weird_ , Jaehwan thinks, but also, _Maybe it’s listening to my songs_ , and he chuckles to himself at that ridiculous thought.

Three hours later, the distant rumble of thunder has his face creasing in immediate annoyance, even as his fingers continue to strum. He does have a small tarp and stand that he sets up sometimes when it drizzles, but with the way the wind is going, his best bet is just to pack up and head home before his guitar gets ruined.

Finishing up the song, Jaehwan stands and bows brightly, taking his time to putter around and clear his things while a few people come up to drop notes and coins into his guitar case. In the back of his mind, he wonders how much will be left after putting the usual aside for rent, and if he’ll have enough cash for a meal that actually consists of more than instant ramen tonight.

“Thank you!” he says again, smiling widely as he hoists his guitar case onto his shoulder, his duffle bag still sitting at his feet. “I’ll be here again tomorrow!” One person waves back hesitantly, but most of the already-dispersing audience barely even bother to turn their heads to look at him. Jaehwan keeps smiling anyway, his expression only fading into a tired blankness once he’s crossed the street.

The breeze is chilly, and the air it brings with it smells distinctly wet. Jaehwan keeps his head low as he power walks along the rapidly-emptying sidewalks, but he’s only gone a few more steps before the rain abruptly begins to pour down, like someone up there decided to switch the shower on at full blast for the fun of it. Biting back a curse, Jaehwan scrambles for his umbrella, juggling his guitar and duffle bag all at the same time.

A flash of movement out of the corner of his eye makes him pause, shoulders tilted awkwardly in an attempt to prevent his guitar case from sliding off his shoulder and onto the wet concrete. He’s standing right by the corner where he thought he’d seen the hybrid, he suddenly realises, and it leads right into an empty alley, occupied by nothing but a large dumpster off to the side.

A foot is peeking out from behind the dumpster, and even as Jaehwan watches, as if its owner realises that very fact, the sneaker swiftly retracts out of sight.

Jaehwan blinks, bemused. He almost walks away, almost leaves this random, probably homeless stranger to its fate – except he suddenly realises that it’s raining so hard that the entire calves of his jeans are all but soaked through despite the cover of his umbrella, and for some reason that single thought makes him imagine the unpalatable experience of having to sit out in the open in this terrible downpour, and his stone heart softens.

“Hello?” he calls, taking his first cautious steps away from the main road. There’s no response, but Jaehwan doesn’t know if the silence is born of fear or because his voice is being drowned out by the loud patter of raindrops on metal.

Rounding the corner of the dumpster, he stares down at the bedraggled, thoroughly miserable-looking creature huddled before him and says stupidly, “Wow.” After all, it’s one thing to hear about it on the news or in passing conversation, but another all together to see with his very own eyes someone with actual cat ears poking out of his head, flattened damply against his skull as he peers anxiously up at Jaehwan like he’s unsure if he’s going to get eaten at any second.

“Um, hey,” Jaehwan says, wondering if he should lower himself down to look like less of a threat or something – but the uncertainty in the hybrid’s eyes is fading with every passing second, his gaze flitting curiously over Jaehwan as his ears twitch and angle forwards slowly. The ears are a light tabby brown, some part of Jaehwan’s mind notes idly, melding perfectly with the oak brown hair falling over the hybrid’s dark eyes.

“Hi,” the hybrid replies after a moment, when it becomes clear that Jaehwan doesn’t really have much else to say apart from his initial greeting. There is a quiver to his voice, and Jaehwan feels completely stupid when he sees that the hybrid’s hands are clenched into white-knuckled fists against his thighs, shoulders tense under his thin t-shirt. Of _course_ he’s cold – Jaehwan’s padded up in a nice jacket and the wind is still nipping at him.

Resisting the urge to facepalm because he doesn’t have any free hands anyway, Jaehwan huffs and jerks his chin to the side. “Come on, you. Get under the umbrella. I don’t care if you’re lost or whatever, but you can crash at my place until the rain stops,” he sighs grudgingly, as if he is being forced to do something vastly against his nature.

The hybrid blinks at him again, before abruptly scrambling to his feet in a flurry of droplets and stepping as close to Jaehwan as he dares without actually pressing his soaked body against the other male. “Thanks,” he breathes, with a grin of delighted relief that lights up his entire face.

The weird thing is that he’s actually incredibly good-looking, leaning far more towards ‘handsome’ than kitten-cute, and it’s probably a thought that Jaehwan should be bothered to even have about something that’s not fully human. Instead, he’s far more preoccupied by the fact that the hybrid is, apparently, taller than him. It’s utterly ridiculous is what it is – how can someone with cat genes still be so gigantic?

“What have they been feeding you?” he mutters under his breath as he stalks away, the hybrid keeping pace with him easily, his drenched sneakers letting out a wet squelch with every step that leaves Jaehwan wincing.

“I’m Seongwoo, by the way,” the hybrid says brightly, and Jaehwan glances over to find Seongwoo staring hopefully at him, like maybe he’s hoping for a treat or a word of praise or something equally silly.

“Uh, I’m Jaehwan, I guess,” is all Jaehwan can say dumbly, because _boy_ is he not prepared to handle a hybrid in any way or form. He barely even knows the first thing about caring for one – it’s not like he’d ever be able to afford having any sort of pet ever, after all.

“You guess?” Seongwoo sounds amused, and that startles Jaehwan for some reason. Barely two minutes in and his preconceptions about hybrids being whiny, oversized baby animals that look like humans are already being overturned – or maybe it’s just his luck and he’s gotten stuck with the only hybrid with a sense of humour.

“Make fun of me again and I’m not sharing my umbrella with you,” Jaehwan huffs, earning a half-scoff from Seongwoo, although he does fall silent over the next few minutes. The buildings around them are getting noticeably more rundown, the roads narrower and the parked cars more rickety. It’s not exactly a good neighbourhood, but it’s all Jaehwan can afford, and he’s mostly gotten used to staying alert and always getting home before dark.

He hasn’t thought about what this area looks like from an outsider’s view in a long time, but the way Seongwoo has one hand tucked nervously into the crook of Jaehwan’s elbow, and the way his steps get progressively more silent and subdued, makes Jaehwan see the overgrown weeds and peeling paint around them with new eyes.

“Stop worrying. You’re not going to get murdered – probably,” he says dryly, shooting a lopsided smirk Seongwoo’s way. That only makes Seongwoo look even more alarmed, like he can’t decide whether or not Jaehwan is joking, and he inches so close that his knee is bumping the guitar case with every step.

Despite Seongwoo’s obvious misgivings, they manage to reach Jaehwan’s apartment without any mishaps, and Jaehwan feels the residual tension along his shoulders dissipate the moment he sets foot indoors. The paint along the corridors outside might be peeling and discoloured, but his home is as cosy as he can make it, the walls a clean white and a large second-hand couch taking up most of the tiny living room.

“Here, come on.” He snags Seongwoo’s hand in his when it seems like the hybrid is going to hang back nervously in the doorway, and tugs the other along with him into the bathroom. “I have a spare towel here somewhere, and you need to get out of those wet clothes, so you might as well just take a shower right now. I’ll get you something to wear, and – um, try not to use too much water if you don’t have to, I guess?”

Jaehwan’s lips quirk into a sheepish smile, and he ducks his head slightly as he pats Seongwoo on the shoulder. The hybrid looks startled, but his answering smile is bright as he takes the towel from Jaehwan.

“Thanks,” he says quietly, and proceeds to flash Jaehwan a quick view of his flicking tail as he turns around. Jaehwan blinks at the bizarre sight and abruptly shuts the door, shoving the confusing image to the back of his mind in favour of looking for a pair of pants that might fit a tallish hybrid instead, and that he wouldn’t actually mind cutting a hole in for said hybrid’s tail.

“Hey hyung, guess what, I took in a hybrid,” he mumbles to himself as he rummages through his drawers. “Any advice on what to do with him?” He continues to grumble furiously under his breath as he shucks off his uncomfortably wet jeans, only to almost fall over when his phone suddenly begins to chime.

Well, speak of the devil.

“Hi, hyung! What’s up?” he says as cheerily as he can while hopping on one foot with his phone jammed between his ear and shoulder.

“Nothing much,” Minhyun replies, sounding amused. “I just wanted to check if you were home since it’s raining. I was thinking of bringing some food over for dinner. You haven’t eaten yet, right?”

Some days Jaehwan still wonders exactly what he did right in a past life to get stuck with someone like Minhyun in this one. It’s been a couple of months since he dropped out of the university they used to attend together, and Minhyun is doubtless busy in his final year, but that doesn’t stop him from dropping by Jaehwan’s flat at least twice a week just to hang out.

“I – well, yeah. I haven’t eaten,” Jaehwan says with a sheepish laugh. “I only just got home.” He’s long since given up on protesting Minhyun’s ridiculous generosity, especially if it means good food for dinner instead of cup noodles.

Cup noodles that he would’ve had to share with Seongwoo. The thought makes Jaehwan pause.

“Actually, hyung,” he says slowly, and Minhyun gives a soft _hm?_ in response. “How much do you know about hybrids?” 

* * *

Jaehwan stares at the way Seongwoo is inhaling his noodles with the aura of a delighted, if rather hungry child, and thinks about the way he’d casually said, “Probably around two weeks” when Minhyun had asked him how long he had been living on the streets. The thought makes Jaehwan feel a little sick to his stomach.

Hybrids aren’t exactly a new thing, but they’re still enough of a novelty to attract an unsavoury crowd if they’re clearly alone and vulnerable. Seongwoo is just incredibly lucky that he’d somehow managed to avoid any encounters with people who probably used to kick puppies and toss kittens into canals for fun as kids.

“There are lots of resources to help displaced hybrids nowadays, mostly because the abandonment rate has been rising,” Minhyun says, with the faintest hint of disapproval in his voice. “I can help to research some of the nearby ones, Hwan. Some of them are fairly decent. They’ll take care of you until you find a new family.” This last sentence is directed towards Seongwoo, who is looking between Minhyun and Jaehwan with an anxious gaze.

“Oh, I don’t know. I’m not really all that young anymore. Not exactly prime adoption material,” Seongwoo mutters, and this hybrid with his drooping ears and subdued tone seems like such a far cry from the bright, funny individual from their walk home barely hours ago that it makes Jaehwan’s stomach turn uncomfortably.

“I mean, you can stay for a bit if you’d rather be here than in a shelter,” he says with a cough, staring hard at his bowl and pointedly avoiding Minhyun’s appalled expression at that offer. He doesn’t even know why these words are coming out of his mouth, because the truth is that he can hardly feed _himself_ with what he’s making right now, except he really doesn’t want that crestfallen expression to linger on Seongwoo’s face any longer.

Maybe it’s those irresistibly fuzzy ears, or just the relaxed happiness that had exuded off the hybrid’s entire being when he had stepped out of the bathroom dressed in Jaehwan’s ratty old t-shirt and sweatpants, or the open adoration that glows in his eyes every time their gazes happen to meet across the table. Whatever it is, Jaehwan finds that he really doesn’t mind the thought of suddenly having a roommate if it’s Seongwoo.

As if on cue, the hybrid’s ears prick, his tail sweeping from one side to the other in a swift movement that makes Minhyun flinch in surprise. “Really?” he says excitedly, straightening and looking from Jaehwan to Minhyun and back again. “I can’t get an actual job outside, but I could help out around the house, like washing your clothes and things. I mean, I’ve never washed any clothes before, but I just have to throw them into the machine, right?” He shrugs flamboyantly, with a look of such perplexity on his face that Jaehwan can’t help but laugh.

Minhyun sighs, scrunching his nose slightly. “Maybe it would be better if Seongwoo lived with me then. My place is bigger, and Jaehwan, you –” He cuts himself off, but his stare towards Jaehwan is pleading, and they’ve known each other long enough for Jaehwan to read it easily. _You can’t afford it. You’re hardly home. You don’t know anything about hybrids. I’m just trying to help._

Jaehwan feels a swell of affection towards the older man, who has stood stubbornly by him even when his own parents wouldn’t. “I’m the one who decided to take Seongwoo in. I’ll handle it, hyung,” he says gently. All the same, some small, guilty part of him knows that Minhyun will simply end up popping by even more often now, armed with whatever food and necessities he thinks Jaehwan and Seongwoo might need.

The rest of the meal passes by slightly awkwardly. Seongwoo is quiet, seemingly more occupied with eating than participating in Jaehwan and Minhyun’s quiet conversation about logistics and finances, although he does trail after them both to the front door when Minhyun finally leaves.

“Are you sure it’s okay for me to stay?” he blurts out once they’re alone, and Jaehwan turns to him with a startled look. Seongwoo might be taller than him, but he looks small and sad with his shoulders hunched apprehensively over his skinny frame, his lips curving downwards uncertainly as he searches Jaehwan’s expression.

Jaehwan has never been under any illusions that he’s a particularly nice person – not like Minhyun at any rate, an actual angel who fusses over his younger friends to a truly astounding level – but certain things do tug at his heartstrings, and Seongwoo is certainly doing a lot of tugging right then.

“I know what it’s like to be dumped by your family,” he says gruffly, embarrassed. “Minhyun hyung was there for me when that happened, so I guess I’m just passing it on.”

There is silence for a moment, and then Seongwoo says simply, just this side of shy, “Thank you,” before he beams, bright and blinding.

Huffing, unsure how to respond, Jaehwan turns away, hurrying to his room to grab a pillow and a blanket from his own bed for Seongwoo, who immediately drapes the blanket over his shoulders like a cape. Taking a seat on the couch, his gaze following Jaehwan’s movements with intense interest, he looks like nothing more than an overgrown, eager kid ready for a sleepover.

Jaehwan kind of hates that he finds the entire scene adorable.

“I can show you how things work around here tomorrow,” he says, taking a seat on the armrest of the couch and squinting slightly as he tries to figure out if the fit will be comfortable. “Just – get some rest tonight, I guess, and if there’s anything wrong with the arrangement we can sort it out in the morning.”

“Okay.” Seongwoo smiles up at him, a playful edge to the curve of his lips, and Jaehwan wonders how it must feel to have such optimism bubbling in his body at all times.

Jaehwan can’t remember the last time he felt as carefree as Seongwoo looks right now, even though he’s under an unfamiliar roof that belongs to a virtual stranger. He’s always been stressed over something or other – a major he hated with every fibre of his being, a passion that his parents have always looked down upon, and now the struggle to make ends meet with his music and whatever other part-time jobs he can scrounge up on the side. Even Minhyun’s friendship, coming far too often in the form of food or hand-me-down furniture, often leaves a bitter taste in Jaehwan’s mouth.

Slowly, as if in a trance, he stretches his hand out towards Seongwoo’s large, triangular ears, giving the hybrid ample time to duck away – but Seongwoo only eyes him curiously for a moment before tilting his head forward, allowing Jaehwan’s fingers to brush the soft fur behind his ears. When Jaehwan freezes, Seongwoo raises his head, bumping against Jaehwan’s palm until he begins to stroke lightly, his thumb resting against the pointed tip as his fingers brush down the length of one ear.

Seongwoo’s eyes flutter shut, and he breathes out long and slow, an expression of contentment taking over his features. All that’s lacking, Jaehwan can’t help thinking wryly, and perhaps a little hysterically, is the purring.

The whole thing makes him feel a little like crying, and he doesn’t even know why. Maybe Minhyun is right and Jaehwan really does need to find some time to do the social thing with his friends, because clearly he is so deprived of company that a stranger’s touch is enough to shake his stone-hard walls.

It takes another minute for the oddity of the entire situation to strike him, and he draws his hand back abruptly as if burnt. “Sorry,” he mumbles, staring down at his pants like there is something supremely fascinating on them.

Seongwoo cracks a single eyelid open to peer at him. “It’s okay,” he says with a laugh. “I’ve always liked ear rubs.”

Jaehwan clears his throat. “Right. Well.” He pauses once more, eyeing the way Seongwoo is absently rubbing the rough fabric of the blanket between his fingers. “What were you doing in that alley anyway? It’s so close to town – you could’ve been seen by, I don’t know, bad people or something.”

Seongwoo squints up at him, his mouth half-opening for a moment, and for the first time Jaehwan sees the hybrid take a moment to consider his answer. “That’s why I was hiding from you,” Seongwoo points out at last, sounding vaguely amused.

“And not doing a very good job of it too,” Jaehwan snorts, smirking at the way Seongwoo ducks his head, teeth flashing and eyes curving in a smile of embarrassment that really should not be as endearing as Jaehwan finds it.

“I was listening to you sing,” Seongwoo huffs at last, ears flattening against his head as if he’s trying to make himself appear smaller, and this time he is the one looking off into the distance, refusing to meet Jaehwan’s wide eyes. “You – I really like your voice. It calms me. I’ve been coming by for a few days now, just for a bit.”

“Oh,” Jaehwan says stupidly, blinking rapidly in confusion. “Well, at least one person in the entire world likes my music.”

Seongwoo whips his head around so quickly it almost gives Jaehwan whiplash. “I’m sure a lot of people like your music,” he protests, so earnestly that Jaehwan can feel his ears start to flame. “You have a great voice.”

Jaehwan has always dreaded feeling like this, the excited bubble of flattered pride roiling in his gut tempered by the utter self-consciousness of being praised so freely. “Okay, okay, that’s enough,” he says with a laugh, as sarcastically as he can manage. “If you wanted a free show you could just have asked.” But he does give Seongwoo another scratch behind the ears to soften his words, which the hybrid takes to with enthusiasm, head angling just so as he directs Jaehwan’s fingers right where he wants them.

“You – you’re okay, you know that, right? You’re a nice guy, Seongwoo. Whatever happened for you to end up on the streets – it wasn’t your fault, I’m pretty sure of that.” The words don’t come easily to Jaehwan, whose tongue is more used to bad jokes or cutting barbs, but he feels like they need to be said anyway. As much as he might like it, he doesn’t think the way Seongwoo has latched on to him so strongly within mere hours of meeting each other is a good thing by any means.

Seongwoo stills beneath his touch, before a barely-audible _Mmm_ sounds in his throat, not an agreement but an acknowledgement. Shifting closer to the corner of the couch, he rests his head against Jaehwan’s side and lets out a long, low breath, pulling his knees up to his chest so that he’s almost completely wrapped up in the blanket.

Jaehwan tips his head back against the wall and wonders just what the hell he’s gotten himself into.

Lost in thought, he runs his fingers through Seongwoo’s soft curls until he feels the hybrid’s body start to go slack against him, uncurling from its tight ball like an unfurling flower, his grip on the blanket loosening until one hand hits the seat of the couch with an audible thump.

“C’mon, you,” Jaehwan mutters, sliding off the armrest and beginning to tug Seongwoo’s lanky body into a more comfortable sleeping position. The hybrid makes a grouchy noise of protest, but he seems happy enough to be able to stretch his long legs out, and Jaehwan rolls his eyes as he flips the rest of the blanket over Seongwoo’s exposed toes.

Straightening, he’s just about to return to his room when Seongwoo’s voice sounds in the silence, thick and drowsy. “Are you – leaving?” There’s an odd tone of bewilderment to his words, and Jaehwan has to close his eyes for a moment at the hollow pang that they leave in his gut.

“I’m just going back to my room,” he says quietly, turning back to look down at Seongwoo, who is staring up at him through slitted eyes.

Jaehwan doesn’t even know if Seongwoo is completely awake, but he sinks down into a squat that leaves him almost nose-to-nose with the hybrid anyway. “I’m not leaving, and you don’t have to either,” he promises sternly. “Not until you decide that you’re sick of me.” The faintest smile touches his lips, wry but set with resolve. He really shouldn’t be making stupid promises that he might not be able to keep, but for this one at least, he certainly intends to try.

Seongwoo seems to take a moment to think about that, before he finally nods, a yawn overtaking him. “Goodnight,” he mumbles, the gleam of his eyes disappearing as his eyelids slide shut.

Jaehwan lets his fingers skim lightly against the thick bangs covering Seongwoo’s forehead, itching to brush through them once more, but eventually he thinks better of it and stands.

“Night,” he murmurs, flicking the light switch off and listening to Seongwoo’s quiet breathing in the darkness. “See you tomorrow, Seongwoo."

**Author's Note:**

> Tbh I have a lot of regrets about this piece, mainly revolving about my extreme procrastination that forced a major restructuring of the entire fic in the 2 days before submission was due lmao. Nevertheless, I hope it was decent even if there wasn't an actual plot arc, and of course all the thanks goes to the prompter for this prompt!
>
>> stray hybrid!seongwoo who is picked up by busker!jaehwan when he finds him in an empty alley while it was pouring rain


End file.
